A Rs 60,000 crore chit fund scam that rocked West Bengal in 2013-2014 known as the Rose Valley Ponzi scam is at the heart of the war between Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and CBI.
Two of the country's biggest investment frauds - Rose Valley and Saradha Ponzi schemes have suddenly again come under scanner as CBI is on a lookout for Kolkatta Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar.
Here are 10 facts on Rose Valley Ponzi scheme which has led to the current crisis in West Bengal
1. The Rose Valley Group was founded by a West Bengal-based insurance agent, Kajal Kundu, in 1990 as an entertainment and hospitality company. It was later expanded to insurance, finance, real estate and consultancy sectors.
2. In 2003, Kajal Kundu died along with his wife and children in a tragic car accident in Tripura, which passed the reins of the empire into the hands of his brother Gautam Kundu.
3. Under Gautam's leadership, the business flourished and it ventured into investment businesses by floating a holiday package plan in 2010.
4. The group collected money from investors from all over the country to the tune of Rs 17,000 crore and in return, promised them a holiday package at the end of the scheme or a return on their investment with a fixed interest rate.
5. Around the same time, the group emerged as one of the biggest corporate groups in West Bengal with its stakes in construction, hotels and aviation industries. It also was linked to IPL team Kolkatta Knight Riders.
6. In 2013, the Securities and Market Exchange Board of India (SEBI) cracked a whip on the group for failing to take its permission for running its holiday package plan which it found was basically a collective investment scheme. The Rose Valley Group was seeking investment in clear violations of the guidelines of the Reserve Bank of India.
7. Major irregularities were found in the balance sheet and profit and loss statements of the Rose Valley's real estate business by the Registrar of Companies during the financial year 2011-12 when the company reported a record loss of over Rs 400 crore and arbitrary loans to its chairman, Gautam Kundu to the tune of Rs 217 crore. At the same time, the bank balance of the company rose and its liabilities increased, as per an Indian Express report.
8. The Supreme Court handed over the investigation into the Ponzi schemes to CBI in 2014.
9. The CBI, during the course of the investigation, made startling revelations that two Trinamool Congress MPs - Sudipto Bandyopadhyay and Tapas Pal - were involved in the multi-crore chit fund scam and subsequently arrested Gautam Kundu in 2015.
10. The Rose Valley scam was also linked to Union minister Babul Supriyo, Odisha CM Navin Patnaik and Tripura CM Manik Sarkar.
